Advisers Latest

Tough times have employees placing greater reliance on benefits for financial security, as employers affirm their commitment to sponsoring those benefits albeit with increased cost sharing.

Although hundreds of financial advisers, consultants, fiduciaries, IRA experts and record keepers gathered in the ‘Big Easy,’ event goers can agree that fee disclosures and regulations are anything but simple when it comes to the retirement industry.

Most advisers and their clients don’t see eye to eye on measuring portfolio performance, according to global asset manager Russell Investments’ latest quarterly survey of U.S. financial advisers.

The U.S. Supreme Court said on Friday it will release audio recordings and transcripts of oral arguments in the health care challenge immediately after the March 26-28 sessions, responding to what it called "extraordinary public interest."

Here is a recent roundup of industry accomplishments. Check to see if a colleague is mentioned this week.

In a new report, titled “Opportunities in Reaching the Middle Market with Life Insurance,” Conning estimates the middle market life insurance protection gap to be $10.2 trillion — a 56% increase when compared to the firm’s last study of the middle market in 2006. The total protection gap across all income brackets has more than doubled.

A large annual survey of consumer satisfaction with health plans finds 41% of members of employer-sponsored insurance plans would shop for coverage through a private health insurance exchange if their employer provided vouchers for purchasing insurance independently.

About 44% of employers believe they will provide employee health benefits through a corporate exchange in the next three to five years, according to a new study.

The Obama administration on Monday released broad new operating rules for state-run health insurance exchanges, which form a key part of the 2010 federal health care reform law that will face landmark Supreme Court hearings in just two weeks.

The National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors Monday praised the Department of Health and Human Services for acknowledging in its final rule “the significant role agents will play in the state health care exchanges.”